13 February 2017 - Treatments for cancer, cholesterol and chronic migraines among medicines accepted for routine use by NHS Scotland.

The SMC, which reviews newly licensed medicines, has today published advice accepting six new medicines for routine use by NHS Scotland.

Osimertinib (Tagrisso) was accepted for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer following consideration through the SMC’s Patient and Clinician Engagement (PACE) process for medicines used to treat end of life and very rare conditions. The PACE meeting heard that osimertinib is better tolerated than other current treatments and is taken orally, factors which can allow patients to lead more normal lives and possibly return to work.

Everolimus (Afinitor) was accepted for the treatment of a rare type of tumour that develops in the lungs or intestine. In the PACE meeting, patient groups highlighted that current treatment options are limited and there is no other proven effective therapy for use in the later stages of the disease. Everolimus can offer patients a valuable delay in time to disease progression with the potential to extend survival. It also has the advantage of being an oral therapy that can be taken at home.

Read SMC press release